Those who dare don't always win

So we're out of the starting blocks. I've been busy all weekend, mostly at the Traverse (where you shouldn't miss Simon Stephens's Morning (reviewed in the paper tomorrow) and couldn't fail to enjoy Phil Porter's Blink) but also out and about elsewhere. Already I've missed a couple of shows that I'm aching to see – Mies Julie at Assembly Mound and Rubies in the Attic at Assembly Roxy, both of which I've heard good things about – due to the inevitable over-runs that happen in the first few days.

During the early days of the fringe, as I dash all over the city, I often feel as if I'm in training for an Olympic event – ironic, given that I've scarcely had a glimpse of London 2012 over the weekend. But I did catch up with The Prize at Underbelly, which for those of you who feel you are missing out on the Olympic action is a verbatim play based on interviews with former Olympians and Olympic hopefuls in training for this year's games. It's a bronze- rather than a gold-medal-winning show, but it has some electrifying moments (a former fencer talking about pushy parents) and offers plenty of insights into the passions and also the cruelties of sport ("you are only ever a hamstring injury away from oblivion"). Rather cleverly, it lets you get to know the athletes and only reveals towards the end who has – and who hasn't – qualified. If you're not in Edinburgh, it heads to Live in Newcastle straight after the fest.

Quote of the day

At Rob Drummond's wonderful Bullet Catch on Friday, the young woman invited up on stage to point a gun at him and pull the trigger turned out to be a stage manager. When told what she would be asked to do, she remarked: "This goes against all my training: you're not supposed to shoot the actor."

Outdoors, but not out of sight

It's good to see the Old College Quad back with a full programme of outdoor theatre this year. There have been some remarkable performances here over the years, the most astonishing undoubtedly Ninagawa's Medea, one of those once-seen, never-forgotten theatre experiences.

But there have been other memorable performances here, too, including Teatr Biuro Podrozy's stilt-and-fire Carmen Funebre, which in 1995 brought a touch of the Bosnian war to the 1995 Edinburgh fringe; the production returns for one night only on 14 August. Meanwhile the company reprise their visceral take on Macbeth, Who is That Bloodied Man? every night until 13 August at 10.30pm. As I said at when it was first here, it's thoughtful as well as an eyeful.

That balance isn't quite achieved in The Blind, the new show in the Quad this year, created another young Polish company, the KTO Theatre. Inspired by the novel Blindness by the Portuguese writer José Saramago, it tells the story of a world struck blind. Whirling dancers are suddenly rendered helpless and are transformed into a conga line of catastrophe before being isolated by the authorities in a hospital where they create their own rules. It's like Lord of the Flies with added hospital beds, which the cast use like rusty dodgems. You probably need to have some grip on the narrative before you go and the choreography is never as sharp as it could and should be to give this the punch it needs. But the final 25 minutes deliver an eye-watering experience which is as visually stunning as anything you'll ever see: the sky appears to bleed red, glittering rain. As the smoke cleared, I was just delighted that I wasn't the person who was going to have to sweep it all up afterwards.

Word of mouth: rumours and tips

I haven't seen these shows yet, but I am hearing very good things about Bitch Boxer at Underbelly, Rash Dash's Ugly Sisters at Northern Stage at St Stephen's, and Curious Directive's After the Rainfall at the Pleasance . Do tell us about the shows you've seen and that you think we should all see. I'll try to follow up any of your suggestions below or you can tweet me @lyngardner – or stop me in the street if you see me.

One to avoid (sad, but sometimes necessary)

The Intervention @ AR Assembly. "It's cruel and it's pointless and it's nothing like it says it's going to be in the brochure," cries Cassie, one of the characters in this inept family drama presented by the Comedians Theatre Company. You could say much the same about Dave Florez's play, which brings together the family and friends of 38-year-old Zac (Phil Nichol) who is drinking himself into an early grave. A flimsy set, cliched writing and a cast who – with the exception of Nichol – barely seem to have bothered to turn up mean that even the skeletons that tumble out of the cupboard should be begging to be let back in.